Ukraine's president says Russia has agreed to supply natural gas for the winter

A Ukrainian flag flies over the traffic control tower of Donetsk Sergey Prokofiev International Airport during an artillery battle between pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian government forces in the town of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, Friday, Oct. 17, 2014. Ukraine's president on Friday hailed progress in Europe-brokered talks aimed at ensuring peace with Russia, with agreements nearing on a gas dispute and local elections in the east. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky)
(The Associated Press)

KIEV, Ukraine – The Ukrainian president says his country has reached an agreement with Russia on supplies of natural gas for the winter.

When Russia cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in June over unpaid bills, it risked leaving not only Ukraine without heat in the winter, but that Russia could also cut off flows to Europe if Ukraine began siphoning off gas from the pipelines crossing its territory.

President Petro Poroshenko said in a television interview late Saturday that an agreement has been reached for Russia to supply Ukraine with gas through March at a price of $385 per 1,000 cubic meters.

Poroshenko said he expected the deal to be signed during the next round of European Union-mediated gas talks, to be held Tuesday in Brussels.